The process of mediatization makes poetry conscious of its relation to media. This development has opened a field of possibilities – the integration and distribution of words with sound and image outside of the book, the dissemination of words into the rapid networks of a digital public space – and in addition it creates new sensibilities – affects, atmospheres, materialities – that reflect back on the written word and the book and conjures new directions for reading and writing book-poetry, including new takes on the history and the concept of poetry. This conference intends to explore the state of the art of poetry within these contemporary mediatic distributions of the sensible. Where do the words go when they leave the page? How do word, sound and image interact in poetry today, and how does this differ from the long tradition of comparing the arts? To what extent is the study of genre (and with it the idea of poetry) affected by theses changes? What are the connections between the above-mentioned new range of sensibilities and poetry, media and culture? And, finally, what are the consequences for the way we analyze poetry and deal with its history?

The conference takes place in Aarhus, Denmark, December 4th to December 6th 2014 and is arranged by Center for Research in Contemporary Poetry at the University of Aalborg and Aarhus, Denmark, and Hedmark University College, Norway.

We invite all scholars and doctoral candidates to present papers that address the questions and issues mentioned above. Topics might include but are not restricted to: - Intermediality: word, sound and image in the digital age - Politics of space: poetry in digital or real public spaces - Sensibilities: affects, atmospheres and materialities - History: rethinking poetry (old or new) in respect to media (old or new) - Conceptualism: challenges to the poiesis of poetry - Translation: the local and the global - Interventions: poetry outside of poetry, or reading the world poetically - Autonomy vs. heteronomy: the borders of poetry - Poetry now: close-readings of contemporary poetry - Interfaces: between poetry and criticism - Other arts: as in film and poetry

The time for paper presentations is strictly limited to 20 minutes, followed by 10 minutes of discussion. The official language of the conference is English. Please send your abstract (around 300 words) including a short CV as an attachment to Dan Ringgaard (nordr@hum.au.dk) or Stefan Kjerkegaard (norsk@dac.au.dk).

The deadline for paper proposals is August 1st, 2014.

Please let us know if you wish to be registered as a participant without presenting a paper.

The conference fee will be 120 EUR including conference dinner. A preliminary conference program will be published November 1st at www.conferences.au.dk/poetry

The conference is kindly hosted by Center for Research in Contemporary Poetry, Aalborg University and the Department of Aesthetics and Communication, Aarhus University.